Best Stand for Public Land Bowhunting

I have tried a ton of stands form the Tree Saddle and Guidos Web to every brand of stand known to man and that is no lie. I have probably owned around 40 different stands. I keep going back to two. Lone Wolf hand climber and sit and climb are two of my favorites but I also like the Tree Walker tree stands. Those are the two in my arsenal now. What have you found that you like the best on public land?

Lone Wolf hand climber. Wouldn't hunt without it. It costs a few $$$ but it's very sturdy once your up, and the open design without a shooting rail is perfect for bowhunting. It's slim profile and light weight let me get way back on long pre-dawn hikes into thick cover without banging around on brush and making lots of noise.

I love my hand climber but I struggle to sit in it more than three or four hours. Do you have any tips. Also do you have the foot rests on yours?

Glad I caught this thread. I am still trying to decide on a stand for this year. I just can't see spending $300-400 or more unless it will absolutely fit my needs for years to come. I'd love to be able to try a few but just do not have that luxury right now. The assault lone wolf is only 14.7 pounds and under $400. Wish I could demo it lol.

Gallego, I will be the first to tell you that if you want a quality stand that will last forever the Lone Wolf is the way to go. I would get the Alpha though as it gives you more room. The way it packs flat you will not notice the extra three pounds.

Parkersdad wrote:I love my hand climber but I struggle to sit in it more than three or four hours. Do you have any tips. Also do you have the foot rests on yours?

Yeah, that seat is another story. Even with the pad. I try and set the seat at a level that my legs are fully extended, yet firm on the platform so it takes some pressure off the rear end. I will alternate standing and sitting every few hours to keep good blood flow in the lower end unit. I also try not to plan too many all day sits in the same spot. I do do this, but find it much easier to pick a spot for the morning and midday, and then have a spot nearby, like a field edge set-up or oak grove so I can climb down and do a short hike before the evening and loosen up a bit. No foot rest though.

PBG, I've had my LW for so long I can't remember when I got it, 10, 12 years ago when they first came out with it. It was so long ago that I got mine, they didn't even make the stabilizer straps for it, you just used the bungie cord to keep the top and bottom from dropping while you climbed. It's aircraft grade aluminum, wont rust, never had any problems. You just replace the traction belts every few years for safety.

My goto setup is a Loc-Limit & LW stick. This setup is light weight & easy to hang. I hunted strictly from climbers for years, thinking a hang-on stand was just to much work. Since buying my Loc-On three years ago I have sold all my climbers. Climbers limit your ability to hunt alot of places. The WMA I spend most of my time on is real climber friendly (alot of straight hardwood trees) but it seems like there is never that prefect tree in range & you just have to settle.

In places where I cant get a climber in I use a fold up homemade lock-on due to theft. I got some places where the trees are not big enough for a climber or just to many limbs. The lightest climber I got is a open shot,and used it almost every weekend last season. Its ok for lightness and with the new mods I made it might be even better. If I could find a used lone wolf I would buy it but I dont like new price. With all the stands out there, there should be a perfect one but theres not.

I have 2 Summit Vipers. I have has several Lone Wolf stands, Treesuit, Guidos Web, ect, Cigbears set up with the KW sticks and Loc on Limit is one I have used too. That is a really good set up if you don't want a climber. My Vipers are easier to set up than a LW and they will go one bigger trees. I replaced the seats with the Hazmore net seat and that shaved a little weight and made it easier to move around when set up.

I just bought a Hunt Comfort seat to go on the hand climber. It is the cats meow. Buoy have to call and ask for them because they only made a few to see if there was any interest. The one on the website only fits the lock on not the hand climber so please call and save yourself some time. Here are some photos of it.

wow, that looks comfortable, going to get one for my lock-on

I did order a Alpha Lock On this weekend and four sticks. I am going to give that a try this year in a few spots that don't have trees suitable for climbers. I'm hoping I am going to like this set up.

Millennium tree seat, lightweight, mobile. It works for me, you're on the ground, just depends on preference. Summit viper or open shot if I need to climb.

Why can't you all just live in New York so we can take a trip out to Public Land and test out everyone's different method of treestand :p

I am still not sure on what to get. Everyone loves what they have and there seems to be no clear winner to choose from :p

Alright let's everybody meet up this season in KY for stand testing/hunting. Ky is central.

lol! We need someone from Kentucky to host

Or we can all just swarm to Dave in WV

Figured KY would be better hunting!!! Early season velvet bucks.

Hunting trip at Dave's stomping ground.

Sounds fun

I use A lock on limit and hooks. ive made a few modifications to my limit though and yes i know your not suppose to use hooks but i cant help it, its just easier althou im not as big a fan ofem any more so ima figure me a way to climb with a foot loop. also i toted ol mans all my life and to me they are tha bees knees, but they are heavy even the aluminum ones, so ima get me a hand climber and give it a shot.

The Lone Wolf is the best hand climber in my opinion. It packs flat and is lite.

I use a summit viper. Very comfortable stand.

I would love for a bunch of yall to come to Amherst! I'd take each of you to a great spot. Hope you don't mind walkin, lol.

I'm game for a KY get together, if that works best for everyone.

I recently picked up an API Bowhunter and I love it. I had a Lone Wolf hand climber that I was happy with UNTIL I had to climb pines. It flat out wouldn't do it. I got sick of sliding 3-4 feet down the tree when i least expected it. The API was $249 and is lightweight and rock-solid. Not too bad on long sits and does great on pines and hardwoods.

I have a Summit Open Shot climber for straight trees and a Loc-On with 4 Muddy climbing sticks for when I'm hunting in the thickest cover.

I've had my Ol' Man out quite a bit this summer. I've never used a climber and researched them quite a bit to try to get something would work form. So far I'm really happy with the Ol' Man. Its really light and packs easy on long walks. I learned quickly how to use and now I get it setup and get up the tree quickly and quietly. I haven't sat for long periods of time yet, but from what I can tell, it seems like the stand is really comfortable too. Oh, and it folds flat and packs quiet too. Seems like a great stand to me.

Lone Wolf Assault and Lone Wolf Sticks !!

I'm loving the guidos web! Not sure if I can go back to other stands. Just way to comfy!

Recently I have been researching all the below:
Summit Viper Elite SD/Specialist SD/OpenShot SD
Lone Wolf Assault/Hand Climber Combo II

And I finally gave in and ordered the Lone Wolf Hand Climber Combo II! (Size 13 Muck Boots) Got a great deal on a new 2013 model on ebay!

I also ordered:
- molle 2 shoulder straps with quick release
- thirdhandarchery treestand bow holder (we'll have to test it out)
- sit and climb sling from lone wolf

Very expensive season but I used my last years saved up Xmas bonus giftcard and I know this setup will last a very long time!

Can't wait to try it out but as some of you might know, I live in NYC and don't get to go Upstate as often as I'd like. I'm thinking about going to a neighborhood forest park and testing it out. Hope nobody calls the cops on me for climbing a tree lol!

Still need to buy new pants since my last ones are ripped and have no pockets which became annoying very fast, but I hate ordering online because things never fit good and Cabelas is 2 hours and $60 gas and tolls away.

I actually use a loc on Windwalker stand, weighs 7lbs. I try to find a hemlock or tree with branches to climb up when i do my pre season scouting. Strap on steps fill the void where there are no branch's. I need to go light as all my hunting is straight up from my cabin. When hunting close to my property on the food plots I use a cheap loc on with guide gear climbing sticks locked to the tree. The whole package costs under $ 75.00 so it wont be too painful if stolen

I just setup my lone wolf with the straps and all right out of the box. I can't believe how light it is even at 17.5 lbs! Guess my back is used to having a 35 lb stand on it from the last couple years lol. I can't wait to try this out. HOWEVER, I just learned that it is illegal to climb a damn tree in NYC Parks. That means I gotta travel 1.5 hours north to public lands to do it! grrrrr . get me out of this crazy city.

Posted Boy Gallego wrote:I just setup my lone wolf with the straps and all right out of the box. I can't believe how light it is even at 17.5 lbs! Guess my back is used to having a 35 lb stand on it from the last couple years lol. I can't wait to try this out. HOWEVER, I just learned that it is illegal to climb a damn tree in NYC Parks. That means I gotta travel 1.5 hours north to public lands to do it! grrrrr . get me out of this crazy city.

At least you can still drink a big soda  

lol